subject: The Jtag Cable For Computing And Gaming [print this page] One item of particular interest for gamers these past few years is the use of a JTAG cable. This is a very simply designed cable and what it does is it connects your computer to a JTAG port of another device, machine, or perhaps an Xbox 360. The cable makes it very easy to take files, scripts, programs, or whatever you like and transfer them to your intended target device. We are going to take a brief over view of the JTAG cable and learn what it is and how it can be useful.
Now, one thing to take particular important notice of is that there is no standard for these type of cable connections. What you may find is that each device you intent to work with with have a totally different pin out on it. For example your particular cable you are going to use may have a TCK, TMS, TDI, or a TDO signal that is uses but the machine you are connecting with may not formatted for these types of signals. Even though all JTAG cables are part of the industry standard IEEE 1149 and include a broad range of signals there is no guarantee that the computer of device on other end is formatted to include this standard.
One nice thing with a JTAG cable is that it does not have very many wires used in its configuration and it is a simple connection to a parallel port. The better cables you will find will be based on a USB type connection, and this makes the whole process of connecting to your intended target far easier. What you need to pay attention to is the type of software that your JTAG cable is designed for because each cable will be based on a configuration that supports a particular type of software. The problem is that there is no global standard specification for many target applications, but you will find that in many cases your intended application will support the use of your JTAG cable.
You will find in your search for a JTAG cable is that these accessories are widely used for FPGA programming. This is going to be a benefit to you because this type of system is very popular and supports many different formats. You will see that each FPGA board will have some type interface based on JTAG so that that programming is convenient. Some of the more popular programmers with this type of format are manufactured by Altera and Xilinx, and are available in both USB and parallel port type of connections.
One of the most popular types in a JTAG cable is the a connection called a Wiggler. This is a unique cable that is simple to use and is based on a parallel port interface and can use BDM debugging. You are going to find that a Wiggler cable is probably a good solution for an Xbox 360 type device because is it simple, effective, and readily available. You can use this type of cable to program an imbedded system, because it connects directly to your target device onboard chip.
If you would like add connectivity and programming capabilities between your devices then consider adding a JTAG cable.
Find out more information, reviews, and availability for a JTAG cable by visiting http://jtagcable.org
